By Nancy Teas-Crain and Linda Thompson
Wheatmark and Puzzled Parents Press
www.wheatmark.com
610 East Delano Street Suite 104
Tucson, AZ 85705
520-798-3306
www.puzzledparentspress.com
450 Summerhill Court
Alpine, CA 91901
888-934-0888 ext. 3
Math for Puzzled Parents, Book 1, reteaches math skills that a parent would need in order to help kids with their homework. It presents many of the common arithmetic concepts taught in primary and middle school, such as sets, numbers, fractions, decimals, ratios, proportions, percents, and problem-solving skills. These concepts are taught in self-contained lessons called modules.
In each module, the authors point out why the topic is important, present definitions, and give examples. The examples are worked out in a step-by-step format along with tips, hints, and referrals to other modules to provide additional help to the parents.
After the explanations, there are a few problems to either test the parents' understanding or to assist them in working on that particular concept with their child. Complete solutions are provided. Finally, each module contains a short and fun activity for parents to do with their child to practice the concepts of the module.
This book was written for parents who are not the primary math teacher of their child. However, as the math teacher for my boys who are ages eleven and twelve, I have been able to modify this book for my teaching, and I have found it very helpful. The introductory module, "Getting Started: A Look at Sets and Numbers," includes information that is not in our current math curriculum. But it was not completely new to me. My memory was awakened to concepts I had not learned long ago in school. Even though the material was not in our curriculum, we went through the module because the concepts seemed important to teach. In regards to the other modules, we have been working through various ones based on the subject areas we are currently studying or will be studying soon. That is what's nice about this book. A parent does not need to read the book from cover to cover or go in a particular order through the modules. It's flexible for your family's needs.
So far, both my children and I have enjoyed supplementing our math lessons with this handy book. Each module is short and to the point. The examples are clear, and the problems include both abstract and practical word problems. My kids also like it because each problem set usually has only five to ten problems.
I really don't have anything negative to say about this book. The listed price of $14.95 seems reasonable for all the information you get. I would highly recommend this book to help you brush up on your math skills and to help reinforce the math skills your children are learning.
A Spanish translation will soon be available, and Volume 2 is in the works. Topics in Volume 2 will include measurement, integers, probability, statistics and graphing, and an introduction to algebra and geometry. I'm looking forward to seeing that volume.
Product review by Becky Voytek, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC, September 2007
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